


Sorciere Nuit

by Atroposisms



Series: La Valse des Monstres [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!, Yu-Gi-Oh! Series
Genre: Bondage, Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Love, Reader-Insert, Romance, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-08
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-08-07 11:02:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7712428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Atroposisms/pseuds/Atroposisms
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The two of you met in a dream, and suddenly it wasn't just a dream anymore. He existed in your life. All because you made a wish.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I. Luna Rossa

**Author's Note:**

> I sank back into the YGO fandom after binge-(re)watching the first few seasons, absolutely loved the Arkana vs Yugi duel, and fell in love with the Red Dark Magician. So, here you go. Gotta love how I wind up writing self-indulgent fics that wind up being super niche.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr @ atroposisms

I. Luna Rossa

"Here, you can have this." Yugi handed you a card, and you took it, blinking blankly at him. "I don't need it, I have my own Dark Magician. And I know it'll have a good home with you." You glanced at the card; it was a Dark Magician, but it wasn't the usual purple colorway. The armor was dark red, the Magician's hair was silver, skin tan.

You smiled at Yugi. "Thanks, Yugi, that's really sweet of you." Tucking the card away safely, you marveled at the addition of a pretty rare card - and even rarer because of the uncommon colorway! - to add to your collection. Not that you dueled, or anything, you simply collected cards. Oftentimes they were older cards that your friends had retired from their decks, or from others who had damaged their cards too much to be able to play them with the new holograph systems.

" - in these cards."

You glanced back at Yugi. "Huh?" You had spaced out, wrapped up in the delight of obtaining a rare card.

"There's magic in these cards," he said. His demeanor had changed, and you tilted your head, curious. He seemed....far more serious than he originally was. Yugi's arms were crossed over his chest.

"Magic?" You sounded doubtful.

He nodded, smiling slightly. "These cards all have a heart of thir own, and they have magic in them. It's quite nice of you to take in damaged cards, so they won't be thrown away or ripped up."

You laughed lightly. "I guess. But they're just cards, Yugi. Are you going to tell me that they're alive, too? Some man dressed as the Dark Magician is going to pop up in my room?"

"They're alive in their own way," he said seriously, staring into your face.

Your giggles petered out, and you raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, sure. If you say so, Yugi." 

* * *

 

You turned the card over and over again in your hand, staring at it absentmindedly. Your textbooks and notes were off to one side; you were just far too distracted to focus on studying.

"You know, you're too nice and rare of a card to just stick you away in one of my card binders..." You mused aloud, "I haven't seen any other cards with the same colorway like yours." You stared at it for another few seconds, and then set it down, shaking your head. "Wow, look at me, talking to a card." Yugi's words had gotten to you, it seemed.

You frowned, then glanced out the window. It was raining slightly, rain dripping down the glass panes. Clouds obscured the light of the moon, but a thin shaft managed to break through the cloud. The pale light lit upon the card and it seemed like the image shifted slightly, the man turning his head to look at you, and you stared at it in shock; the clouds quickly covered up the moon once more, and the rain began to fall even harder.

_Magic... The cards have a heart...._

Your frown deepened, but when you blinked and looked at the card again; the image hadn't changed. It was as it was supposed to be.

Magic, that's just silly.

Shaking your head and laughing at yourself, you tucked the card safely away and began to ready yourself for bed. 

* * *

 

Not that you slept well.

Monsters and magic flitted through your dreams, and you felt horrendously afraid and alone. It was raining in your dreamscape, and a red moon peeked out through the clouds. All alone, you began to speak to it, and it spoke back.

_'I called out your name to see if you could come, and you did...'_

* * *

 

You sat up, eyes wide open, heart pounding.

Confusion and fear thudded through your body, but after a minute it drained away, and you fell back to sleep.

When you woke in the morning, you put it down to something weird that you had eaten for dinner. You did get those lamb kebabs from the sketchy street vendor, so....that as probably it, really. They did taste a bit strange.

Strange nighttime dreams aside, your days proceeded as usual.

Your parents busy with work, you with school and studying and clubs. Yugi and the others always seemed just a tad too busy for you - often disappearing for weeks at a time to compete in dueling tournaments, and always winning. They would send you postcards, though, and every now and then you would run into them at school, handing them the huge stack of homework and readings that they needed to catch up on. Not that the teachers seemd to mind - the prestige of having Kaiba, Yugi, and Jounouchi being renowned duelists only seemed to increase the standings of the school itself. Really, you didn't have much of a social life. Pastries and tea sometimes with Mazaki, and sometimes you'd watch as Yugi or Jounouchi played a practice duel and spend time with them. But those times were becoming increasingly rare.

So you were left with your studies, your bedroom, and the empty house. And as stupid as it sounded, you were frustrated with being alone with your thoughts for so damn long that you had taken to talking to your cards.

Particularly the Dark Magician Yugi had given you. It was nestled in it's own display case on your desk, and even if it was just an inanimate object, it did feel good to at least talk to something and pretend that you could be heard. It had become your pre-bed ritual, where you would spend a few minutes unwinding and talking about your day and feelings aloud, and then you would fall asleep.

But those strange dreams would always come back.

Almost every night, the dream repeated itself. The moon would call out to you, and in loneliness and fear of the dreamscape, you would respond and talk with the moon. Sometimes it seemed like the dream would last all night, and other times it seemed you only spoke for a few minutes before it faded away into your usual nonsense mishmash of dreams featuring classmates from your high school.

Growling in frustration, you slammed your textbook shut, feeling oddly drained and defeated. Your mother had returned from a business trip, and her presence in the home had caused for increased pressure on you to perform academically. But even having another person in the house didn't do anything to ease your loneliness; your mother wasn't much for conversation as she was usually busy talking to someone on her phone - business took priority.

"I wish I wasn't so damn alone," you muttered, and then turned off the light and swept off to bed.

* * *

 

You woke again, heart pounding, feeling a sense of deja vu. It was that stupid moon dream again, only this time nothing spoke to you. It was just empty, and there wasn't any moon in the night sky. Terror had jerked you into wakefulness, and rubbing the sleep out of your eyes, you moved to get out of bed, wanting to make yourself some tea to lure yourself back into sleep.

Instead, fear bloomed inside of you again.

There was a tall, shadowed figure leaning against your desk. You couldn't make out much, but the dim moonlight illuminated a faint gleam of red. Fabric fell to the floor in folds, and something conical nearly scraped your ceiling. More moonlight suddenly lit your room, and your breath caught in your throat. Red armor, red fabric, green staff. Tan skin, silvery hair, and watchful eyes. You closed your eyes, shaking your head fervently, convinced this was some extremely bizarre lucid dream.

"This is just some really, really realistic dream. It's those weird lamb kebabs I got again, this is just some weird hallucinogenic food poisoning...." You opened your eyes.

Nope. Still there. Still casting shadows and armor glinting dimly in the light. Except now his arms were crossed over his chest, and a slightly disdainful look had settled across his features.

"Your wish has summoned me here." His voice was smooth and deep, and he sounded somewhat haughty.

"I need some tea." 

* * *

 

You sat on the edge of your bed, staring at the Dark Magician standing in your bedroom, tea in hand. Sipping slowly (and with a somewhat shaky hand), you tried to get your thoughts into order. You had turned your room light on, so the two of you weren't in the dark, and you could get a closer look at him. "Okay, so. You're like, actually real."

He arched a thin eyebrow.

You glanced at the floor. "Well, you're casting a shadow, so...I guess you are real. Next question then, why are you here?"

He gave a small sigh. "Your wish and will has summoned me here into the material world from the dream world."

"My...my wish and will?"

"Your wish to no longer be alone."

"Oh." You felt your face flush in embarrassment, and suddenly wished that the light wasn't on so he wasn't able to see your face turn read. You hastily took a sip of tea, trying to buy yourself some time. "Right, right. Yeah. Okay, so how'd you get here then?"

"Magic." His answers were definitely getting shorted and more clipped, and he was looking bored.

You blinked. "Magic." You shook your head. "Ha ha, real funny. That's some joke," you said dryly. But then again, how did he get here into the house, past your mother's room, and into yours? "Magic isn't real," you added firmly, trying to convince yourself that it was true.

"No?" He raised an eyebrow, and with a lazy movement, twitched his staff in your direction, an incomprehensible murmur falling from his lips. You felt yourself rise into the air, nearly three feet off your bed, and your tea fell from your hands as you twisted in the air, desperate to get yourself down back onto your bed.

"Put me down!" You hissed, trying not to yell and alert your mother to anything strange that was happening. Still looking haughty, he made another movement and said another strange word, and you landed softly back down on your bed. At the same time, the tea that you had spilled rose out of the fabric of your duvet, the mug repairing itself and the tea filling it up again. You stared, wide-eyed, as the mug placed itself on your nightstand. The tea was steaming slightly.

"Okay, so magic is real." Your response seemed to mollify the Red Dark Magician, and now he was looking smugly pleased. You reached for the tea, and then thought better of it. It had just been in your duvet, after all. Speaking of which...you tentatively felt around the duvet, feeling for any wet spots. There were none. Okay. Okay, so Yugi was right. Magic was real, and apparently so were Duel Monster cards. Next thing you know someone was going to tell you Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy were real and attempts to discredit them were some sort of secret society conspiracy.

Something clicked in your head.

"Wait, so when you said my wish and will... Was that from when I said 'I wish I wasn't so alone'? Oh my god, you could hear me speaking to your card this entire time?" You had wondered if this could have gotten anymore mortifying, and apparently it was completely possible.

"Yes. I've heard every word," he said dryly, "and not just the waking ones. We have spoken in your dreams as well, and you had said the same things."

You wanted to smack yourself in the face. But....in your dreams? A frown briefly crossed your face. The red moon, then, in your recurring dreams? "Wow, so you...Wow. I honestly have no idea how to respond to that." You awkwardly cleared your throat. "Alright, moving on from my complete and utter embarrassment, uh, do you have a name?"

Well, that was stupid. Again, the urge to smack yourself in the face was overwhelming. It was a Duel Monsters card, it's not like it had a first and last name.

For the first time, the Red Dark Magician looked thoughtful instead of haughty or bored. After a moment, he furrowed his eyebrows and hesitated briefly, before finally answering. "You... If you wish, you may call me Ata."

You tilted your head, curious about the origin of the name. "Alright, Ata it is, then." That was a good start. Less awkward now, since you at least had a name to call him by. Ata looked pleased that you were going to start calling him by that name, and you hesitantly smiled back at him. "Um, if you don't mind... Could you do something about the..." You waved your hand around your head. "If you stand up straight you're going to scrape my ceiling, and that'd be a bit awkward to explain to my mother..."

Ata arched an eyebrow. Again. He certainly did that a lot. Snapping his fingers, the upper pieces of armor disappeared into thin air. You felt your mouth become dry. The card art had really....left out quite a few details. Like the fact that underneath the upper armor pieces, he wore a dark red robe that was skintight. And that despite his slender form, he was finely muscled. When he crossed his arms across his chest (it certainly seemed to be his favorite pose), you could see the muscles flex slightly underneath the fabric. Fighting to keep your face from blushing, you determinedly looked away from him. Finding a Duel Monsters card to be physically attractive was unsettling and uncomfortable, and you weren't quite sure how to feel about that.

"So, Ata, I know your name, that magic is real, you're real, and that you've been hearing everything I've been speaking to your card for oh...the past two months or so. I mean, it's nice that you want to keep me from being lonely or whatever, but, you know, you're magic. Why did you decide to pop up in my room? Why me? You've been in other people's decks, did you show up in their dreams and rooms too?"

Ata considered you for a few seconds. "I find you to be acceptable," he said finally, completely ignoring the other questions. You blinked at him, and opened your mouth to say something, but he cut you off as he glanced out the window. "The sun rises. I will return to your side when you have finished with your studies for the day." He flicked his staff, and then his form grew hazy....and suddenly Ata was gone, as if he had never been there at all.

You sat there on your bed, staring in shock at the space where Ata had stood. It was nearly half an hour before you managed to get your thoughts together, and rouse yourself. You glanced at the card on your nightstand. The art had changed slightly, and it now appeared that the Red Dark Magician was smirking at you as opposed to off in the distance. You hurriedly glanced away, wondering if Ata was able to see your actions as well. You half-hoped that that he would appear again after you came back from school, but half-hoped that what happened earlier was some bizarre waking dream and that none of it had happened. 

As you began to get ready for the day, the cup of tea on your nightstand was still gently steaming.


	2. II. L'etoile Montante

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, finally. This has been sitting my in drafts for a couple of months. As always, thanks for the hits/kudos/subs/comments.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr @ atroposisms

You were almost dreading going home from school, unsure if what had happened was really....well, real. Yugi and friends had actually been at school today, and he had pulled you aside for a few minutes.

"Are you alright? You seem distracted." Worry lined his face.

"Oh, yeah...I'm fine. Just haven't been getting much sleep lately. Especially last night." You offered him a wavering smile. "Don't worry, I'll be right as rain soon."

He eyed you. "And how's the card collection coming along?"

You hesitated. "It's fine. I picked up some display cases for some of the rarer cards, like that....like that Dark Magician you gave me." You almost didn't want to mention the card. If he asked for the card back, how the hell were you going to explain the change in card art?

"Are you liking that Red Dark Magician?" 

You smiled at him again. "Yeah, it's a really nice card for you to give me. Thank you, Yugi. Let me buy you lunch sometime as a thank you for giving me such a nice card!"

It wasn't a lie, not really, it was genuinely a really nice and rare card. You just sort of wished that magic wasn't real and that some strange man (monster?) hadn't showed up in your dreams and in your bedroom.

Yugi laughed, delighted. "Deal! I'm glad you like the card so much. I'll let you go, I gotta go meet up with Jonouchi to practice dueling!" He walked away, still laughing and waving goodbye. Hand half-raised in response to him, but then your smile faltered, and your hand dropped. 

Damn, now you had nothing keeping you away from home.

You opened your bedroom door, unsure of what you would find. A part of you sincerely wished that it was just going to be your room as usual, but instead, you found Ata standing by your window, staring pensively outside. It had started raining again as you walked home, and raindrops slid down the glass.

Unless this was an extended hallucination, then everything was real. 

"You've returned." Ata didn't turn around. 

"Um... yeah. And you're back. In my room."

At this, he finally turned around, looking at you with an appraising look. "Did you think I would not keep my word?"

"Uh..."

"Or perhaps you thought I was a mere dream?"

You flushed lightly. "Um..." Caught. "Well, it's just a bit weird, and sudden. Plus, magic isn't exactly seen as real in this world, you know."

Ata tilted his head, confused. "And yet the other boy, the wielder of the Dark Magican, is clearly well-versed in magic and Shadow Duels. You are a friend of his." A blank look was clear on your face, and he shook his head. "You are unaware. Nevermind. Shadow Duels are no longer important to me, nor am I involved with them anymore. You are not a duelist, and that is fine with me."

Setting your bag down, you sat down at your desk, resting your chin on your hand. "So, what's a Shadow Duel? Is that a thing you had to do with your previous owner? Which, by the way, you never said if you ever showed up in other people's rooms. Or whatever."

He raised an eyebrow. "You have an interest?"

"You do that eyebrow thing a lot, you know that?" You shrugged. "And hey, you said you were here to 'fulfill my wish of no longer be lonely'.” You put air quotes around that last bit. “So, you know, let's talk. And well, you can sit down, by the way. Or whatever makes you comfortable."

Pursing his lips, Ata settled into a more comfortable pose. Which wound up being floating about a foot off your floor, sitting cross-legged, staff balanced across his lap. You leaned back in your chair, watching him curiously and waited for him to begin.

"Very well. If you wish to know..."

/

Things settled into a routine, of sorts. Ata would be in your room whenever you came home from school, and he would keep you company. Most of the time was spent talking as you learned more about Duel Monsters, and Ancient Egyptian history (which would come in handy for some school assignments), but occasionally there were times where the two of you would settle into silence - you working on a school assignment, Ata...well, doing whatever it was he did. Meditating while floating in mid-air, you supposed. At least now he was no longer wearing any armor, so you avoided any suspicious questions from your mother about marks on the ceiling from that tall armored hat of his. Now he mostly wore a long-sleeved red robe of a design whose origins you couldn't quite place. With him finally having taken physical form, the weird dreams with the red moon and the eerie landscape had stopped completely, and you were finally able to get a full night's rest.

And thus you learned more about Ata. Somewhat. He was a bit cagey, and often sighed whenever you probed too deep into his 'past' and changed the subject. A topic you had quickly learned to avoid was about his previous card owner, and you had wound up asking Yugi about that instead, somehow stammering out some excuse as to your curiosity when Yugi asked why you wanted information on Pandora the Conjurer.

Most of the time, though, Ata asked about you. About human life, about your life, your family, academics. Nearly everything seemed to be of interest to him, although he did tend to have a haughty attitude about some things (most of which seemed to revolve around dueling).

If anything, Ata was interesting and witty. A bit of a sarcastic asshole, at times, but always earnest. On top of that, he didn't seem to mind your questions, and occasional inane chattering. And sure enough, you weren't lonely anymore - you had someone to talk to, whenever Yugi and the others disappeared for long periods of time, or your parents were gone on whatever business trip that had captured their attention.

"You are smiling."

You blinked, yanked out of your thoughts, mentally slapping yourself for constantly spacing out whenever someone else was talking. "Huh?"

"You are smiling. Has something pleased you?" Ata was leaning forwards on his elbows, in his usual cross-legged position.

"Er...Yeah. Just thinking, you know, it's nice talking to you." You shrugged, feeling awkward. Plus, he was really easy on the eyes and...and that was a thought you shoved away quickly. 

"I see." He looked at you consideringly. "Good." He looked quite pleased with himself, smiling smugly.

You gave a nervous laugh. "Well, it's not everyone who can say they've actually talked with, well, a Duel Monster, you know? You're interesting, and it's always nice talking to you." You shrugged. "It's nice having someone to talk to, and...well, you don't really judge. Although you still do that eyebrow thing constantly."

Ata raised an eyebrow, and you giggled. "See, you did it again."

That seemed to fluster him. He quickly turned away, looking unsettled. But you were pretty damn sure you saw a blush on face.

/

The back of his hand was resting against your forehead, and you were pouting while Ata was frowning. "You're quite feverish," he said, "Perhaps that school trip to the mountains was a poor decision."

You sniffled and cleared your throat. "Yeah, I sort of figured that when I woke up feeling like crap this morning." You reached up to grab the thermometer in his hand, placing it under your tongue. After a minute, it beeped. 39 degrees Celsius. A definite fever, and there was no way you were making it to class today. You sighed, and then tried to stand up on wobbly legs. Alarmed, Ata gently pushed you back down to sitting on your bed.

"You are in no condition to be up and walking about," he said, "What do you need? I can go acquire it for you."

"Um...tea. Chamomile. And some honey and lemon. Good thing mother and father are out on another stupid trip." You sneezed loudly. And you wouldn't bother calling them and letting them know you were sick either, it would just be seen as a nuisance if your phone call or text interrupted a meeting. Ata nodded, briskly walking away to head downstairs to the kitchen. Since your parents were gone so often, you saw no reason for Ata to just stay in your room all day, and he knew the layout of the house quite well by now. Some minutes later, he returned, teapot and large steaming mug in hand.

"You know, since you're magic, couldn't you materialize some tea or something out of thin air?" You asked, gratefully taking the mug. 

"It is a law of the universe - no matter may be created or destroyed, only reused again and again," he responded, watching you as you sipped your tea. "Please drink the entire mug," he added, smiling slightly as you did as he said.

"Oh, yeah, we call that the first law of thermodynamics. Learned about it in physics."

"So even humans have advanced far enough to gain deeper insight into the universe."

You sighed. "Ata, you don't have to word that in a way to make it sound like humans are all stupid, you know. Besides, didn't the original souls of Duel Monsters come from humans?"

Settling back into bed and pulling the blankets around you, you reached for some more tea. Ata gently brushed your hand away, pouring some more for you instead.

"Some monsters. Some have simply always been, summoned into existence by sorcerers from the home realm."

"Hmm."

"Enough questions, you need to rest."

You finished drinking your second mug of tea in silence, placing it on the nightstand after you were done. It reminded you of the first night Ata had appeared in your bedroom, caused for you to float into air, and you spilled your tea everywhere on your bed. 

"Fine," you said, "I'll rest." You scooted over to one side of your bed, and, feeling bold from the fever, patted the space next to you. "Take a nap with me, then."

"No."

You pouted again. "I'll rest if you take a nap with me, Ata. Please?" You wheedled, trying to convince him with the sweetest voice you could manage (a bit difficult when you were sick).

Ata bit his lip, thinking, then sighed deeply. "Very well." He looked disgruntled at the idea, but the severe look softened when you smiled brightly at him. He pulled the covers aside so he could slide into bed.

"Yay," you mumbled quietly as he lay next to you, looking distinctly uncomfortable at the situation. "Relax, Ata." You scooted closer to him, and rest your cheek against his chest. "Besides, you're really, really comfortable."

Ata stiffened, and then after some hesitation, he wrapped an arm about your shoulders, and tugged the covers over the two of you. Your mild shivers stopped, and you settled more comfortably against him.

"Tell me something," you mumbled, a wave of exhaustion suddenly hitting you like a brick.

"Such as?"

"Don't know. About yourself, or the world you come from. Just...something interesting." You yawned.

"Well..."

Within a few minutes, his calm voice lulled you to sleep.

/

Things were weird, after that.

You sat at school, feeling somewhat rude as you let your thoughts drift away from whatever it was that Jonouchi and Honda was talking about to whatever the hell it was you and Ata were. Had? Something. It was something. It was like one of those embarrassing junior high moments when you confessed to your crush (who was also your best friend) that you liked them, but their response was 'oh sorry, not interested but let's stay friends', but then the friendship became really awkward. Because clearly the other person now felt awkward, and then you felt awkward about it because they felt awkward.

It was just a giant, awkward mess. 

Not like he had just stopped showing up, or anything. But there was distinctly less conversation, and he was definitely more guarded than before.

And besides, it wasn't like you went 'hey I'm in a feverish daze and you're really hot, let's bang' or anything. You just napped with him. So what was it? What did you do that upset him? That, and what were you going to do about it, anyway?

You worried at your lower lip. Psychology wasn't your strong suit.

"So, do you agree with Jonouchi, or with me?" Honda's voice pulled you out of your thought.

"Huh?"

"Aw, man, don't tell me you weren't listening this entire time!" Jonouchi sounded pained. 

You looked sheepish. "Sorry, guys.... I'm just distracted."

Jonouchi peered at you, looking immediately interested. "Ooooh, someone's got a crush...! I know that face, it's the face of a girl who likes someone!"

You could feel your face turn red, and your blood pound in your ears.

"Come on, guys, knock it off... And how would you know that, hm?"

"Hey, I've got a little sister, alright? She gets that spacey look whenever she's liked a guy, and you got that same look."

"Oh my god, Jonouchi, stop..." You pleaded, albeit half-heartedly. 

Not that they listened. You spent the rest of the lunch period being teased by both, humoring them with good nature.

And maybe they were kind of right. Sometimes the two of them could be insightful, even if it was in the most knuckleheaded of ways.

"So, what's up with this guy? We gotta beat him up or something?" Jonouchi asked, pushing his sleeves up his arms and flexing his arms in an attempt to seem threatening.

You sighed deeply. "Nooo...."

"Well what's wrong then? You're not normally like this," Honda said, looking interested and also looking as if he was ready to beat someone up.

"Um..." You hesitated for only a moment, and then it all just came spilling out. Well, most of it anyway. Minus the fact that it was literally the Red Dark Magician and a few magic-y other details; you didn't want them to look at you like you were totally off your rocker. You sighed again. "I just don't know what to do. We still talk, but it's just not the same and it's kind of frustrating me. And also I might just be upset at the fact, too," you said. 

Jonouchi and Honda both looked introspective.

"Have you talked to him about it?" Honda asked.

You shook your head.

"Well, it sounds like you need to do that," he said with finality.

You heaved another damn sigh. Maybe he was right. 

/

You trudged slowly up the stairs to your bedroom, not really wanting to talk about the awkwardness. It was just so stupid, and you didn't like the fact that you had to come to terms with the fact that maybe you had the teeniest tiniest of crushes on Ata. Or the fact that Jonouchi and Honda managed to call it when you had been knee-deep in denial. Your hand hesitated on the doorknob; it was stupid, this was your own damn room so why were you so nervous and unwilling to go in?

Oh. Yeah. Because you knew Ata was going to be there.

You opened your door, and yep, he was there, as usual.

"Hey," you muttered, dumping your backpack on the floor by your desk.

Ata gave you a small greeting, not moving from his spot by the window, resolutely staring outside. The weather matched the mood - dark and cloudy, but hopefully it wouldn't rain. 

You sat down in your desk chair, staring at him for a few seconds, trying to muster the courage.

"Hey, so.... Ata, did I do something wrong?" You asked finally, voice small and nearly choking on your own words. You hated confrontation so damn much, and something like this just made you feel awkward. 

At least that got his attention, and he actually turned around to face you. He looked just about as uncomfortable as you did about the whole thing.

"I don't know how to deal with certain....things," he said finally. "Certain feelings, I suppose. They're uncomfortable. They make me uncomfortable."

You furrowed your brows. "What feelings? Oh god, are you sick?" Was that why he was acting so weird? Somehow your cold virus mutated and.... wait, no, that was stupid. Magic existed, alright you could accept that, but mutating viruses just sounded like it came from a cheesy zombie flick. "Nevermind, that was a stupid question."

"Yes, that was a stupid question. No, it's....more..." He broke off, looking frustrated. "It is you." You could feel your heart drop in your chest, cold and heavy like a stone. That wasn't what you wanted to hear. "You are....you're frustrating. You are kind, but incredibly bemusing and frustrating at times. You are a wonderful listener, full of questions and curiosity. You are...beguiling, poetry in motion, and I don't know why I am feeling this way," he finished, finally, frowning and folding his arms across his chest.

You knew your mouth was wide open, gaping at him. That took a turn.

"Oh my god." You leaned back in your chair. "Holy shit. And here I thought....wow. Damn. Thought I was gonna have to do the whole 'I like you' thing first and follow it up with a 'but we can just be friends' speech." Then you started to giggle; oh my god, this couldn't be happening. This felt like totally surreal - well, even more surreal than it already was. Like some weird rom-com movie or drama.

"Soooo, you like me."

Ata let out a huge, frustrated sigh. "Well, yes. Not that I intended to, but you're just..." He shrugged, and turned away again, looking a bit sullen at your giggling. "You laughing is one of the reasons why you're frustrating."

After a moment, your giggles finally petered out, and you stood, walking over to him. "Well, good thing I like you too."

Ata glanced at you from the corner of his eye. "Really?" It was cute, the hesitancy and hopefulness in the single word.

"God, yes, really. You know, the awkwardness could have been avoided if you had just said something," you said, trying to sound annoyed but smiling all the same. "But, I'm going to do the adult thing and look past that," you added, putting on your best serious face, "and I'm going to kiss you instead." Leaning up on the tips of your toes, you reached up to tug his face down, and kissed him.

Rosemary and mint. He smelled like rosemary and mint, and his lips were so damn soft against yours. His arms wound around your waist, pulling you flush against him as he deepened the kiss and you threaded your fingers through his hair. This was good, this was really good.

You repeated that thought to him when you finally broke the kiss, feeling rather dazed, but in a pleasant way.

"I was human at one point and I do still remember such things," he pointed out, smirking and looking rather pleased at the effect he had on you. You didn't care; your only response was to kiss him again.


	3. III. Lumiere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter became so long I split it into two, so chapter four will be the last one.
> 
> Sorry for suuuuch a long wait, thank you for sticking with me! 
> 
> Find me on Tumblr @ atroposisms
> 
> Thank you again for all the comments/kudos/bookmarks/subscriptions. I appreciate it all so so so much.

III. Lumiere

The days passed by, slow and indulgent - warm summer nights and cicadas singing and balmy breezes wafting through your window. It was a good summer, a very good summer, you and Ata lost in your own private world. Learning, exploring, and Ata being vulnerable at his own pace. Monsoon season soon ended, passing over into a crisp fall. Ata loved to cuddle with you in your window nook, blankets draped over the two of you, the two of you talking, or him reading and you taking a nap, safe and warm in his arms.  
  
Ata... it felt stupid, but whenever you thought of him your heart would flutter and skip a beat. Sometimes your thoughts wandered, thinking of his body...his hands wandering across your body, his mouth on your neck, your shoulders, your...  
  
You shook your head slightly, clearing away that train of thought as if it were an annoying fly. Not that things had really gotten any further than heavy petting - you always stopped him, and he always did, asking you if you were okay.  
  
And as always, you would say yes. Ata would look at you carefully, thoughtfully, quietly... you couldn’t guess as to what could possibly be running through his mind. But then he would smile, kiss your lips gently, and pull you into his arms.  
  
You bit your lip, still somewhat lost in thought, as you walked into your room.  
  
He was there, as usual, reading. It was cute - one day he had asked you if you could bring him something to read, so you pulled some books from the library after asking the librarian for something interesting (translation: dense). The look of excitement on his face whenever you brought him another stack of books - a mix of novels that you liked, and ones specifically for him - always made you smile.  
  
“Hi,” you whispered softly and shyly, not quite wanting to disturb him. The intense concentration on his face, being able to see him utterly lost in whatever he was reading and unaware that he was being observed, was priceless to you. A small piece of him that you tucked away in your mind.  
  
On top of that, it was still weird as hell coming to terms with the fact that he had romantic feelings for you, that he liked you back, that he was...for lack of a better term, your boyfriend. Albeit one that would be hard to explain to friends and family, other than maybe Yugi.  
  
Ata looked up at you, bookmarking his place at the same time, and smiled, handsome as ever. You noticed that he smiled far more readily now.  
  
“Afternoon, did you have a good day at school?” He always liked to know how your day was. Like a real boyfriend.  
  
“It was good... Yugi and the others are back, so I got to see them, drop off a huge stack of homework for them...”  
  
Even though Yugi and the others were still often gone, as were your parents, it wasn’t as bad. The loneliness was still there, you missing being able to go out and hang out with your friends, but Ata...  
  
You dropped your backpack on the floor, and flopped down on your bed, stretching and yawning.  
  
“Soo glad there’s no school tomorrow...” You patted the space next to you. “Cuddle me, please?” You gave him your best puppy-dog eyes, even though it was totally unnecessary. It was a surprise to discover that Ata loved physical contact - cuddling, holding hands... you supposed being a duel monster locked away in some other dimension didn’t really bode well in terms of physical wants and needs.  
  
Ata grinned (okay, not that he ever really grinned...it was always either a smile or a smirk, with him), rising gracefully to join you. You eyed him appreciatively; you had made it a point to buy him something more casual than the red robe he wore, although Ata argued he could have simply modified something. Nonetheless, you bought him something simple: plain white shirts, jeans, and on a whim, a burgundy leather jacket.  
  
The white shirt and jeans was a good look on him, you had decided that quite awhile ago.  
  
Pulling you against him, you squirmed slightly to turn around and face him, and kissed him briefly. Your hands curled in the fabric of his shirt, feeling the warmth of his skin.  
  
“Mm, not enough...” he murmured when you pulled away, his arms tightening around your waist, and kissed you again. You giggled, pressing yourself against him. The smell of rosemary and mint and a hint of leather surrounded you, relaxing you.  
  
You moaned quietly into the kiss. Ata had a sinful mouth, with his kisses always leaving you breathless, your face flushed and your heart pounding. Your hands soon wound themselves into his hair, tugging lightly at the silken strands. His own hands began to wander as well, sliding up underneath your school blouse before pausing. A groan escaped you when Ata broke the kiss, and you pouted up at him.  
  
“You’re quite aware that we don’t have to, we don’t ever have to - “  
  
“No, no,” you interrupted him, shaking your head slightly, “I’ve been thinking about it, and I was wondering if today, we could...” You broke into nervous giggles, unable to finish the sentence. It just seemed so cheesy, and the situation had a tint of the surreal now. A Duel Monster had materialized into your life, the two of you had developed feelings for one another (another level of weird), and now he was a boyfriend-type thing who was concerned about pressuring you into sex (and now you were about to have sex with him? and that had ascended into a whole different level of weird).  
  
Ata’s hands tugged your blouse into place, frowning at you slightly.  
  
“Are you sure? I’d like you to want this because you want it, not because you think it’s something I want.”  
  
God he was sweet.  
  
“I want to, really,” you insisted, and pouted slightly again when he raised an eyebrow at you. He still looked rather doubtful.  
  
“If that’s what you want...” he said finally, warm hands sliding up underneath your shirt again. “If you want me to stop...”  
  
“I’ll say something, I promise.” Your voice was a mere whisper, and your heart was racing in your chest. Heat bloomed where Ata touched you, something coiling in your belly, and you kissed him, a hint of desperation and need in it.  
  
You could feel him smile against your lips.  
  
Then he pulled away from you, gently tugged your hands out of his hair. A quick gesture of a hand, and both of your clothes disappeared, reappearing neatly folded in your window nook. You glanced at him curiously, almost too shocked to say anything (but really, how convenient, you decided). He began to trail kisses down the length of your body. A shiver ran through you; yes you wanted this, but you were still nervous. He ran his thumbs across your nipples, and you moaned, unable to help yourself.  
  
“Really? So much from so little?” Ata glanced at you, sounding amused.  
  
You huffed. “Should you really be teasing a girl like that during her first time?” You tried to sound cross, but your voice wavered slightly as he took a nipple into his mouth, sucking lightly and drawing forth another moan from you.  
  
“Yes,” he said finally, and you laughed, feeling some of your nervousness drain away. You reached forth, taking a small handful of his hair and tugging lightly.  
  
“That’s mean,” you said. Ata gave a small hiss at the pull, narrowing his eyes at you slightly.  
  
“Is it really?” He asked lightly, his hands wandering down your body, his touch light, until they reached the juncture of your thighs. You forced yourself to not shiver at the touch, and parted your legs for him. His finger circled your clit, barely any pressure, and you bit your lip, a choked moan escaping you. Ata’s gaze was fixated on you, watching your every move and expression.  
  
“And this? Is this mean?”  
  
You arched your hips, desperate for more contact.  
  
“Yes!” You managed to gasp out.  
  
“Is that so...” His voice was low and rough.  
  
The feather-light touch disappeared from your clit, and instead he slid a single finger into your cunt, curling the digit inside of you and quickly finding the spot that made you moan loudly and clench violently at the sheets.  
  
“Was that mean also?”  
  
You whimpered; he slid another finger inside of you, drawing forth even more moans from you.  
  
“Is it?” He asked insistently, and kissed you briefly. When you didn’t respond, he stilled his hand.  
  
You bit your lip again, squirming slightly beneath him. “Yes, very,” you breathed, and watched as he slid himself between your legs. Peering up at you, his eyes dark, and you heard a low growl from him. You could feel a flush spread across your face at the look in his eyes, could feel your heart pound violently in your chest as his warm breath ghosted across your wet pussy. His hands gently lifted your legs to rest them on his shoulder, and you blushed furiously. The action left you feeling so vulnerable and exposed.  
  
And then a brush of his tongue against your wet folds drew forth a shuddering moan from you. Again, more firmly this time, and Ata was rewarded with a louder moan, noting your hands clenching at the bedsheets. This time he didn’t bother to check your reactions, instead burying his face against your cunt.  
  
God, he was good with his mouth and fingers and tongue...gently rubbing your clit, tongue slipping inside of you. Ata delighted in the sounds he drew forth from you, the arching of your back in reaction to him. Your hands flew to his head, tangling themselves in his hair. His mouth moved to your clit, sucking gently, as two fingers curled deliciously inside of your pussy.  
  
You couldn’t help it, his name slipped out as a moan as his fingers pressed against your g-spot. You shuddered violently, twisting on the bed as the pleasure spiked and the orgasm tore through you, and you swore you were screaming his name. Ata continued to gently play with your clit as you rode through the pleasure, eventually coming down from the intense high. Your body relaxed against the bed, breathing heavily.  
  
“Oh damn...” You realized you had been tugging hard at his hair; a few strands had been ripped out.  
  
Ata pressed a kiss to the inside of your thigh.  
  
“I find I quite enjoy being mean to you.” Ata was smirking at you, looking quite pleased with himself.  
  
“Oh?” It was the only response you could muster.  
  
His body slid up yours again, pressing himself against you, relishing the feeling of skin against skin. You tangled your hands into his hair again, loved the feel of tugging at it. It almost hurt to look at him, sometimes, he was so absurdly handsome. The assuredness, almost smugness, the dark eyes...  
  
Ata kissed you, his tongue sliding into your mouth. You could taste yourself on his tongue, musky and sweet. One hand cradled your face, thumb stroking your cheek gently.  
  
Hesitantly, you pulled away. “Do you, um....want me to...” Damn, you weren’t sure how to finish that sentence. Reciprocate?  
  
At least Ata had the courtesy to not laugh, although the corners of his mouth twitched slightly. A quick kiss was pressed to the tip of your nose, and you giggled. He brushed a few strands of your hair out of your face.  
  
“No, there is no need.” Another brief kiss. “The focus is all on you.”  
  
“O-oh...”  
  
The feel of his hard cock resting against your stomach was all too obvious now.  
  
He looked concerned again, reading the expression on your face.  
  
“Are you quite sure?”  
  
You nodded fervently. “I want you.”  
  
His hand reached down, and you felt the tip of his cock press against your entrance. Ata’s eyes were locked on yours, and you felt him press his hips forwards. You exhaled sharply at the feel of his thick length slowly pushing inside you, and squeezed your eyes shut. It stung, and it was an uncomfortable fullness. It wasn’t as painful as you thought it would be, though.  
  
“I’m fine,” you murmured in response to his unasked question. You moved slightly underneath him. “Please?”  
  
Ata smiled at you - and you felt your heart flutter - and he thrust into you fully. His thrusts were slow and careful, and you moaned his name easily. One of his hands trailed to yours, gently grasping it, twining his fingers with yours.  
  
Oh, he was sweet.  
  
And good. So very good, although you didn’t have a comparison point. Sweet, gentle, considerate...  
  
It was a slow, gradual build, and you closed your eyes again, your free hand covering your mouth to muffle your moans.  
  
“Open your eyes,” Ata said, and you did, confused. “Look at me...” His breathing was starting to become slightly ragged, and he paused to tug your hand away from your mouth, pinning you down. “I want to see you, want to hear you...all the sounds you make, my name. I want to remember how you look, your body beneath mine, the flush on your skin...”  
  
You blushed even harder, but did as he asked.  
  
The thrusts became faster, more erratic, and you felt the build again, the pleasure slowly reaching it’s zenith. Ata moaned quietly, loving the look of pleasure on your face, how easily you moaned his name. His own soft moans spurned you further, and you arched your back, and he began to move his hips even faster.  
  
“Ata...oh, god, Ata...” Your moans became even louder, squeezing his hands in yours as you came, stars bursting in your vision. He didn’t stop, and captured your lips in a fierce kiss before biting at your neck, sucking hard. His thrusts became a staccato, and you heard him moan your name, muffled against your neck as he came inside of you.  
  
There was a moment, a lull, as the two of you gathered yourselves, you whimpering slightly as you felt him slip out of you. You felt sore, although not in pain.  
  
“Are you alright?” Ata gathered you in his arms, and you rested your head against his chest. The sound of his heartbeat was strong and steady.  
  
“Mmhm...” Languor spread through your body, and you reached over to take hold of his hand again. “Definitely. More than alright.” You lifted your head to look up at him. “That was... really good.”  
  
He was looking smug again. “Tired?”  
  
You let your head drop down to his chest again, nodding. Warmth from his body suffused yours, felt your eyes droop.  
  
“Sleep, then,” he whispered, and you felt a blanket slide over the two of you.  
  
You smiled; there were definite perks to dating a magician.


	4. IV. Joie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the shift in writing style - I've been experimenting lately, but I felt it was a good way to end this particular story.
> 
> As always, thank you so much for the support, kudos, comments, bookmarks. I'm so happy and still surprised that so many of you enjoyed Ata so much.
> 
> Thank you for sticking with this short story to the end!
> 
> Find me on Tumblr @ atroposisms
> 
> (Chapter title translations:  
> I. Red Moon  
> II. Rising Star  
> III. Light  
> IV. Joy)

IV. Joie

“I trust you.”  
  
You could see his hands shake slightly as they worked, the soft cords of rope looping around your body, knots tied with a deftness despite his nervousness. Could see the dark desperation in his eyes as he continued his work.  
  
“I trust you,” you whispered, and you saw him bite his lip, ducking his head down away from you as he paused for a brief moment.  
  
“I trust you.” It became a litany, a prayer of sorts, your own desperation of wanting him to understand seeping into your voice. Ata continued with a renewed determination, finishing off the rope with a final knot nestled in the juncture of your thighs. Two separate cords were tied along your torso in an intricate pattern, splitting as they reached your arms to bind your wrists to the headboard.  
  
“Do you really?” He whispered, and you could feel pain - Ata’s own hurt, the keen want of being vulnerable, the terror of being this close and open to you. You nodded fervently, finding yourself unable to mouth the words as his hands ran down your sides and you had shivered - the knot rubbing gently along your folds, eliciting a loud moan.  
  
“Y-yes...” you managed finally, “I do.”  
  
Ata teased a finger underneath a portion of the rope on your belly, tugging upwards lightly and sending you moaning once more - the knot against your clit, the length digging into your cunt.  
  
“Not just to gratify me?” He sounded worried.  
  
“No.” You were breathing somewhat heavily; Ata always managed to draw forth so much - could make you moan - with so little, with only the lightest of touches. “Because I want it, and I know you won’t hurt me.” You peered up at Ata, and saw how his breath caught in his throat at that.  
  
Even now, he was concerned about that. Every time after the first, he had always been so gentle, so sweet, unwilling to allow you to pay attention to him, or explore his own wants. Smiling - your heart skipped a beat at that - he kissed you, hand trailing further down to tease you. The kiss was rougher than usual, heated, and he bit at your lower lip. You moaned into the kiss, squirming underneath his body, setting the rope to teasing.  
  
His eyes were dark, taking in the sight of you bound - and you knew you were at his mercy, knew he could have you there and tease you until you could only think of how much you wanted him. But this time, there was no tease, just him adjusting the rope along your folds, and you felt his cock slide deep inside of you. You moaned freely, loving how thick he was, the feel of him filling you completely.  
  
Ata gently rested his forehead against yours, and you stared into his eyes, feeling the rough and fast pace he set, felt the pleasure rise up in sharp peaks.  
  
“Kiss me,” you whispered, and he obliged, dominating with teeth and tongue. Low moans flew freely from him, a hand tangled in your hair.  
  
“Cum, cum for me, please,” he said, pulling away from you, his voice strained as he thrust into your even harder and even more erratic pace. “Look at me, let me see your face,” he added when you closed your eyes.  
  
You did, cumming at his command, knowing that he loved to see your face awash with pleasure as you tightened around him. Ata came shortly after, could feel his cock twitch inside of you, your name falling from his lips, and he placed a small quick kiss to the tip of your nose.  
  
“Ata?” You asked, voice quiet, suddenly feeling very tired.  
  
“Hm?” Ata had turned to the task of undoing the binds around your wrists, but he paused and looked down at you, concern flooding his face again.  
  
“Stay with me?” You couldn’t seem to encapsulate what you really meant by that. “Please don’t leave me.” And now you were the desperate one. “I don’t want...” _I don’t want to be lonely again._  
  
Ties loosened, and your hands free, Ata lay down next to you, tucking your head underneath his chin, intertwining his fingers with yours. You weren’t worried - knew that he understood what you meant, as much as you understood his own need to know that you trusted him.  
  
“I’ll always be here for you,” he murmured, and you felt joy.


End file.
